A Destiny No More
by JadedPhoenixBurning
Summary: A sequel to "A Change of Destiny". Now that Serena has her new life, Darien is now faced with a task that he'd never thought he'd have; what to do with his life without the bubbly blonde to share it with him. Up until this point, much of his life has been devoted to finding and protecting his princess of his dreams. Now that destiny has been abandoned, new dreams take hold.
1. A Destiny No More

**A Destiny No More**

Prince Darien had looked forward to the visit from the Moon Princess and her entourage for nearly a month; ever since he had first met her at the ball given for her coming out on the moon. The first time that he'd seen the princess in her elegant white ballgown Darien had thought that she looked just like an angel dancing among the clouds. It was that first instant when he caught sight of her that he knew that she was the one that he felt destined to marry. When the Queen of the Moon agreed to allow the Princess to make a visit to Earth the prince had no doubt that everything would work out just fine for him and the princess.

Of course the match had not been exactly popular with everyone in his kingdom. The people of Earth had an inherent fear of those from the Moon Kingdom as well as those from the surrounding planets. Isolationists have been pushing for all ties to the kingdoms to be severed. Instead of joining with the Moon Kingdom through marriage there was a large sect of the Kingdom of Nihon who wished that the kingdom would be combined with the kingdom to the south. Should the kingdoms join together it would be more able to defend itself should the interplanetary kingdom ever turn it's back on Earth.

While on the Moon, the sister of the queen took to eying the young prince and had hoped that perhaps a match could be found for herself with the heir to the throne of Earth. Beryl had instantly been attracted to the prince of the Earth and she hoped that despite their age differences a marriage could be brokered in the name of good inter-kingdom relations. Before the ball on the Moon the match between Prince Darien and Beryl seemed almost certain. A fact that had thrilled Beryl to no end since she was very fond of the young prince; one might even say that she was obsessed. When it was made known that the prince would be entertaining the Moon Princess in preparation for talks that were sure to lead up to an announcement of engagement, Princess Beryl had flown into a rage about being jilted. That had been the last time anyone had seen the fiery sister of the queen and soon the prince had forgotten all about the angry woman.

Now that the Daughter of the Moon and her guardians and guards were on their way back to the moon, Prince Darien allowed all thoughts of anything other than the golden goddess to escape him. He took great pleasure in showing his would-be-queen around the kingdom that he hoped to share with her. While out and about, it didn't take long for the prince to notice and become uncomfortable with the fact that Princess Serena seemed very familiar with one of her protectors. He was even less comfortable with the fact that Serena was not content to allow the member of the Royal Guard to fade into the background with the other guards; to trail her much like her shadow on the ground as a guard should. Seen but not heard from as the rest of the guards were. Serena would point out various things that she was sure that her companion would enjoy whenever she came across them.

By the third day of the royal visit to the palace on Earth Prince Darien was starting to get a little unnerved by the Royal Guard who seemed to be far too close to the princess for propriety's sake. Darien found himself trying to show off for the princess in an effort to draw her attention from the man who seemed to be an unspoken rival for her attention. The man stood watch over Princess Serena while she observed Prince Darien and his generals spar in front of various members of court. As the guard watched on, Darien was almost sure that he saw signs of amusement in the blond man's eyes as he fended off a mock blow that the leader of his generals brought down (though the prince was well aware of the fact that the general hadn't used all of his might).

After three days of catching glimmers of the guard's thoughts in regards to him and his abilities, Prince Darien'd had enough of it. The prince called out and suggested that he should test to see just how well protected his love was by her Royal Guards. Prince Darien knew that the only way to wipe that superior look off of the lowly guard's face was to show him up and to do so publicly. Once suggested, Serena seemed to enjoy the idea of watching both the guard and the Prince spar.

As the two approached one another in the center of the courtyard, the cocky armor-clad guard spoke up, "Are you certain that you wish to do this Sire?" He said just loud enough for the prince to hear him as he stood ready for the match to begin to see who was the better swordsman.

"Any reason that you wish not to?" Prince Darien asked as he lunged forward only to over shoot his opponent.

"I just figured that I should point out that I am not accustomed to taking it easy on my opponents. I will not succumb easily for the sake of allowing you to show off for the princess." The irritatingly self-assured guard easily parried Darien's next thrust of the sword. As they continued to spar, they did so both with swords and words.

"Trying to show off a bit yourself, are you?" Prince Darien asked since he'd like to know just where this guard stood with the woman whom he was considering to make his queen. Could it really be that this man harbored some hope to be more than the princess's hired protector?

"Nope, I'm merely showing you what you asked. How well defended the princess is from threats; regardless of where they come from." With that last verbal shot, the guard side-stepped another blow and brought the broad side of his sword to the back of the prince's armor to indicate a killing blow had this been an actual battle.

Prince Darien's brows creased at the ease that the guard had been able to get the upper hand on him, and in front of the entire court too. The only thing that he could be somewhat happy about was that the princess hadn't seemed to be detered by the apparent failure of the prince's ability to best the guard. Still, the incident did serve to prove to himself that he needed to strive harder in his studies of battle. If that one guard could get the better of him then so could another and that meant that, should something ever happen to his generals, he was vulnerable. As the future king of his kingdom, he had to ensure that any possible weakness was reinforced to help make it stronger; even if that weakness was him.

* * *

_I know that this was very short but I figured that I'd post it for a couple of reasons. One, I know that there are dozens that have been waiting on the sequel to "A Change of Destiny". Two, this will allow those who want to follow to go ahead and get the notices in their email when I update next. Three, this lets you know that I haven't forgotten that I'd promised the sequel. I had actually started it before but planned to post once it was finished but due to computer issues that story has been lost. Instead, I'll try to get a couple chapters in the que ready before posting but I won't wait until it is completely finished this time. Thank you for following my work._

_Just for reference, the start of this story will take place before the fall of the Moon Kingdom before jumping to about a year after the end of "A Change of Destiny". Enjoy._


	2. The Gift of Sight

After the last of the vast Royal Expedition from the moon left, Prince Darien turned back toward the palace when he looked up and saw a familiar individual standing on the fortress's wall gazing down on him. The kingdom's oracle rarely emerged from the inner recesses of the palace which made the prince lower his brows in concern. After a glance back toward his guards and seeing Malachite's own look of concern, Prince Darien decided to go to the oracle's inner sanctum to hear the latest words of prophecy that had never before been proven wrong.

The prince walked down the long, dark, stone-covered halls as he went to seek one of his most trusted advisors. So trusted, the prince knew that he didn't need to be accompanied by any of his guards or generals. Here in this dank and shadowed place, no harm could ever come to him. It was once told to him that there was magic here that only would protect those with the king's blood running through their veins. Until a hundred years prior, these chambers had served as quarters for the royal family. Only as the palace was expanded so greatly that returning to this small corner of the palace seemed to take much longer to the main sections of the ornate structure had the family's sleeping quarters been moved and blessed by a wizard to offer similar protection.

He could never really understand why the oracle had chosen such an isolated place to call home. Within the palace walls yet in perhaps the most deserted part since this was the oldest section, well over three hundred years old. Perhaps the isolation helped to call up the visions of the future that the oracle was known for.

Once Prince Darien reached the door to the oracle's chambers, he heard from the inside, "Come in, your Highness."

Not surprised that his presence was already know, he opened the door and found the palace mystic gazing into a large bowl of water. Strolling over to the table, he tried to see what seemed to be so captivating about the clear liquid but knew that he didn't have the gift that his long-time companion had.

"You wanted to see me," the prince stated simply.

Looking up, the dark-haired woman who had lived within the dark, inner chambers of the palace her entire life focused her eerie gaze on the younger man of only five years before returning her attention to the water.

After several moments of silence, the prince once more spoke up, "If there is nothing that you wished to tell me, why did you-"

"If you are to rule this kingdom, you will need to learn patience, Young Prince," the oracle scolded in a way that no one else in the realm dared to do, save only his own parents. "I was taking a second look to ensure that what I'm about to tell you will come to pass. After all, not everything is always as it first seems to be when peering into the future."

Prince Darien felt much like a small child for the scolding and went to reprimand her speaking to her prince in such a manner only to have the words die on his lips with only a glance from the woman. Here he was, the Crowned Prince of the greatest kingdom on Earth, yet this lowly servant commanded respect from all around her, even him. That was the air that he knew he needed to exude but had not learned to the same extent as the oracle had.

"Unfortunately, in this case, it would seem that my first impression was correct. You must end this alliance with the Moon Kingdom."

"What? Why?" The prince knew that the engagement between himself and the blonde princess wouldn't be popular among his people but he hadn't really cared. Everyday he felt himself falling more and more in love with the golden goddess and he would not be denied his happiness with her.

"If you pursue this union, it will mean the total destruction of this kingdom, needlessly. The Moon Kingdom will soon find itself in the middle of a civil war; one that we do not need to include ourselves in." The oracle had to turn away from the vision within the water as she spoke. Looking up into the eyes of the prince, she knew that the lives of many would rest firmly in the hands of the prince and his actions in the coming days. She must convince him to forgo his choice for a bride for the good of all. "Leave this matter for the queen of the moon to deal with. The blood of your people should not be spilt in defense of those who do not matter to them."

Hearing such isolationist thoughts coming from his advisor made his blood boil. "You see the deaths of those on the moon and do not wish to warn them? You'd rather sit back in comfort, knowing that we could have saved them?"

"But they cannot be saved, my prince. They will die! You cannot change that. Your actions can only influence whether or not your people will join them. As ruler, you must learn to put the needs of your people ahead of all else, even above your own heart." As she spoke, the oracle stood up and walked over to where her ceremonial saya, an ornate dagger, was kept and began to carve a design into the palm of her hand.

"I've heard you say in the past that there are many paths that can be taken to reach the future. Surely there is a path available in which these deaths will not occur. I'll find that path. I will see to it that the Moon Kingdom is warned and-"

"There is no such path in this case," the woman said as she completed her carving, her warm blood beginning to seep from the shallow cuts. "But you will not believe me on this. Not without seeing it for yourself. Give me your hand."

"Why?" Prince Darien eyed the woman whom he'd always considered to be a friend.

"If we mix our blood, it will be possible for you to receive the ability to see what I have told you is true. But be warned, such a gift may prove to be a curse if used incorrectly. So, do you wish to see for yourself the destruction and death that I have foretold or will you take me at my word for it?"

"If you've been able to give me this gift before, why haven't you?"

"You've never needed it before, my prince." The dark-haired woman watched as the man before her debated with himself before extending his hand.

"How long will I have this ability?" Prince Darien wasn't sure if he really wanted to be able to see the future or not. Not if his companion was correct that there was nothing that he could do to stop it from coming to pass but he also wanted his best chance to do what he could to help not just his fiancée's people but his own as well.

"For as long as your soul desires it," the simple statement came in response, "Not only in this life but any life that may come afterwards."

Prince Darien felt the sting of the blade as it dug into his palm. Once the carving was done, he could see the outline of a bird of some sort that matched the one in the oracle's own palm. He watched as his own blood rose to the surface of his skin and blur the lines of the drawing within his palm.

Without further words, the woman took the prince's hand within her own and intertwined their fingers, pressing the carvings and the wounds together. As their blood mingled, heat began to emanate from where their hands joined. Darien went to rip his hand from her grasp but she pulled up her other hand to hold onto his wrist until the heat faded away. The oracle then released the hand of her prince and took a step backwards.

"Is that it?"

"Yes, you will be able to see that all that I've told you will come to pass, now."

Eying the pan of water, Darien walked over and squinted onto its depth. He didn't know exactly what he was supposed to do but he concentrated anyway.

"I don't see anything. It didn't work."

"It worked; you just are not allowing the visions to come in their own time. They will not be forced."

"What good is it to see the future if you can't do it whenever you want?"

With a sad smile, the woman replied, "That is yet for you to learn."

* * *

Prince Darien sat up covered in sweat while breathing hard. Running his hands through his dark hair, he recalled the dream that he'd had. He'd seen Princess Beryl at the front of a vast army, an army that seemed to consist of citizens of both the moon as well as Earth. The palace on the moon was engulfed in flames as its defenders began to fall away. In his dream, he had known that he had to reach Princess Serena but he had been stopped by one of her guards; the guard whom Darien had suspected that he had feelings for the princess while she had visited his kingdom on Earth.

Darien had been prepared to fight the man but he vanished from his vision and he found himself in the princess's inner sanctuary. There he saw the lovely young woman for whom he loved and raced to her. His lips found hers only to be pulled away from her by the very ground beneath them exploding.

Darien pulled his sword and stood to protect his would-be queen. Before him stood Beryl and she had four warriors protecting her that he couldn't clearly see in his vision. He did know that they felt familiar to him. He remembered the sense of betrayal as he breathed his last breath. He never even saw what had been the fatal blow that had ended the lives of both himself and his princess. Just before waking up, Darien saw the vision of the Moon Kingdom in ruins; only the queen of the moon herself remained standing.

Darien knew that he had to warn Serenity what he had seen. Her own sister was planning to amass a large army and raid the palace. She intended to use both the people of the moon and the people of Earth. He would stop this future from taking place, he had to. Otherwise, he would watch Serena die!


	3. General Distress

Jadeite sat cleaning his sword as he thought on the events of recent weeks. Since the moon's princess returned to the moon, his prince had begun to immerse the kingdom further and further in the other realm's rising political discord. In the last month alone, the two royal families had exchanged nearly a dozen messages. Nearly all of the messages sent from the prince had been sent in the early morning hours; this morning's message included.

The general worried about his prince. He seemed to be getting less and less sleep lately. That lack of sleep was affecting his performance during his ongoing sword training. The generals had suggested that perhaps the sessions should be put on hold until the prince was in better shape for them. Prince Darien had insisted that a lack of sleep was no reason for him to cease his lessons from them, however. In fact, he had doubled the number of sessions and added lessons from Nephelite to learn more about the mystic arts.

To Jadeite, his prince seemed to have become driven by some unseen force. So much so that it concerned him. Maybe those within the kingdom who had suggested that they should cut off all relations with the Silver Moon Kingdom were right. The rumors of a civil war between the queen and her sister and the factions who have joined her have increased and he'd hate to see his own people suffer because the two women had somehow drawn the people of Earth into their internal squabble.

Jadeite had come close to saying as much to his prince but held his tongue so far. Despite his own personal feelings, he knew that it was not his place to question the decisions of his liege. If the king and queen had agreed to the prince's course of action then he was duty-bound to follow their lead.

Returning his sword to his side, Jadeite stood to leave the small armory since it was late and he was due to train with the prince early in the morning. As he began to walk along the deserted halls, he was surprised when he came across the kingdom's oracle. The last time she had emerged from her chambers had been the day that the Moon Kingdom's princess had returned home from her visit to Earth. She was roughly Malachite's age but for some reason she had always appeared to him as something of a mystery. The king was known to visit her from time to time; even when she was only a small child, the daughter of a chambermaid. He also knew that the queen has never gone to see the young oracle; despite her husband's insistence on consulting her in important matters.

Knowing that the dark-haired woman rarely left her rooms deep in the heart of the palace for no reason, he stepped closer to her boldly before verbally acknowledging her presence.

"Oracle, is there something that I can do for you?"

"I need to speak with you, but not here." With that, the mystic turned on her heels and led the general back toward the magically protected rooms, magic that she herself had reinforced recently. Only once the two were in the heart of the palace did she once more speak.

"You must find the prince and get him away from here. He is in danger but is too focused on the goings on of the moon to see what is happening here on Earth."

"What kind of danger? If there is a threat to the prince then of course the other generals and I wi-"

"No! Just you." The oracle walked over to her divining basin and poured fresh water into it before reaching for a potion bottle and pouring it into the water as well. "The other generals have been killed. The men that you trained with today were not them; only replacements that Beryl is using to get close to Prince Darien. She is obsessed with him and will stop at nothing to get exactly what she wants. You must go to the prince tonight and take him to the mainland and hide him there."

"First, you know very well that our prince does not hide; ever. Second, what do you mean that the others have been killed? How could someone, especially this Beryl, kill our greatest warriors right under our nos-"

"Beryl has joined forces with Metalia, the dark queen of the Negaverse."

"Medallia is dead, Oracle. Her magic was destroyed nearly a centu-"

"Not destroyed, imprisoned. They are not the same thing. Beryl used her limited magic to free Metalia from her prison and that has granted her the position of ruling over her demons. Demons that she has used to attack many within the kingdoms already and replacing those who have fallen to her warriors."

"Why didn't you tell us of this before now? Why wait?" Jadeite watched the woman's eyes take on a look of annoyance at the question.

"I didn't know until tonight," the woman defended herself as she wove her hand over the basin of liquid, creating small ripples to cast across the surface of the divining bowl. "This is what will happen if you do not hurry. Much of the kingdom is falling under Beryl's influence. Many of the guards have already aligned themselves with the fallen Lunan. She is preparing for her strikes; first here to seize the prince, then she will take her war to the moon."

Jadeite's eyes went wide as he witnessed scene after scene unfold before him. He even saw his comrades shown in the vision; at least they appeared to be his comrades. Their appearances sent shivers down his spine as they laughed maniacally at the deaths of those before them. That was when he saw his own face among them; he, too, looked as if killing those both on Earth and on its moon gave him great pleasure.

"How?" Finding his voice, Jadeite didn't want to believe that he, himself, was capable of such brutality. The image before him couldn't be real. "How… How can I stop this?"

"As I've said, get the prince away from here. It will alter the course of events. He won't like it since it will still mean the destruction of the moon but it should change things just enough so that our kingdom can survive."

"The others, why did Beryl take them but leave me? I don't understand."

"You are the youngest, Jadeite. You should be used to others underestimating you based on that fact by now." The oracle grieved for the other generals just as much as he would (for one especially) but she could not bear to see anything happen to either him or their prince. "Now go! Beryl has learned how to disable the magic around the Royal Chambers. It won't be long before she strikes."

Sparing only a moment to glance at the divining basin once more, Jadeite turned on his heels and quickly went searching for his prince. He had no idea just how he'll be able to convince the other man to leave with him but he knew that he must do just that. Running through the nearly deserted halls, Jadeite neared the Royal Wing but fell short as he heard the king's voice along with the other generals'. He wanted to believe that all that the oracle had told him was wrong but when he heard them telling the king that he had betrayed the kingdom and had already joined Beryl and her forces, he knew that he'd been told the truth. As Jadeite ducked into another hall, he heard the king call out for his guards to bring the young general to him personally.

Knowing that his time was short, he raced to the chamber that belonged to the prince as swiftly as he could. When he found the man in question, Jadeite pushed him back into his room while glancing behind him to see if the imposter generals had followed him.

"Jadeite, what are you doing? What's the meaning of this?"

"I apologize, my prince, but I had to make sure that no one else saw me." Jadeite stalked over toward the window and gazed over the courtyard and saw that the palace guards were all being assembled, no doubt to locate him. "I just came from the oracle, she has warned that I have to get you away from the palace tonight."

"Wait a minute! Why should I leave the palace? Why-"

"Beryl. She has already set a plan into motion to seize control of the kingdom and she seems especially interested in you. Please, I'll answer any questions that you have but first we have to hurry."

"What about the other generals?" Prince Darien had known his general long enough that for him to be acting like he was, there had to be a true threat to him and the kingdom. The prince checked his sword before walking over to the window to join Jadeite.

"They're dead."

Jadeite knew that he should have been more tactful but right now he didn't have that luxury. As he watched the other man's eyes widen at the statement, Jadeite began to explain that Beryl had killed the other men along with various people within the court and the Royal Guard and replaced them with monsters. A truth that he himself had denied until he heard that the men whom he'd thought were his comrades informing the king that he'd betrayed the kingdom. The prince and the general made their way to the hidden tunnels that ran within the walls of the Royal Chambers as Jadeite explained as much as he could.

"I must get you to the mainland. Once there, it should be harder for Beryl to find you. Once things have died down we should be able to-"

"If Beryl has begun to set her plans in motion, we should contact Serenity immediately."

"Sire, it is my job to keep you as safe as possible. If we were to go to the moon, I can't guarantee that you'd be safe there."

"I understand that, my friend, but I'm not about to just stand by and not do anything. Please, help me."

Jadeite breathed in heavily before nodding in resignation. At least he would be getting his prince out of the castle. That was the first thing that he had to worry about it. Once away, after warning the Lunans, Jadeite could only hope that his prince would then be reasonable when it comes to getting him to safety. Jadeite led the other man down the passageway toward the magical transport area that would allow them to escape. As the two raced toward the transport area, the sound of approaching guards could be heard and Jadeite knew that they would not be the only ones sent here to the most logical location for a fugitive to flee. Knowledge that was confirmed as he and Prince Darien arrived at their destination only moments before the other generals filed out of another corridor that led to the chamber.

Prince Darien's eyes went wide as he looked back and forth between the men that looked like his long-time friends and generals and the man who had told him of Beryl's deception. He couldn't see any indication that they were really monsters as Jadeite claimed. A part of him didn't want to believe that his friends were dead but if he believed that then he would then have to question why the general who had sought him out to bring him to the transport area would tell him something like that if it wasn't true.

"Your Highness," Malachite drew his sword and eyed the general who now stood between himself and the other generals and guards in the room. "Please, you must trust me. Move away from Jadeite, now. He is a traitor and must be dealt with."

Jadeite narrowed his eyes at the man posing to be the eldest of the generals. He could only hope that the prince recognized these imposters for what they were. Surely he knew that none of them would ever draw their weapons on one another, nor would they use their prince as a pawn to be used against the others. Still, he couldn't risk Beryl's minions seizing control of the other man. As the Royal Heir began to respond to the leader of his generals Jadeite muttered an apology, begging for his prince to forgive him, before swiftly shoving the man into the magical transport; effectively sending him to safety.

Hearing the curses of the other men in the room, Jadeite smiled as he raised is sword in challenge. He knew that he would die this night and be replaced just as the others had been. He could only hope now that his prince would find protection and asylum on the Earth's moon. In any case, the prince's safety was now in his own hands.


End file.
